Winter is the harshest season when it comes to wear-and-tear on residential buildings. Not only does ice collect in cracks and spaces between bricks and masonry, contributing to façade deterioration, but salt also erodes surfaces, boile…

On Thursday, August 14, 2003, New York City experienced a blackout of major proportions, part of an event that affected eight states and part of Canada as well. The Cooperative Coalition to Prevent Blackouts (CCPB), and the Federation of N…

During the recent citywide blackout, most everyone found themselves somewhere in the dark, and the city's co-ops and condos were no exception. The 24-hour crisis left nearly everyone in New York's five boroughs (and much of the Northeast) …

Scenario: A shareholder or unit owner suddenly demands an inspection of the board's "books and records." Since the board is not guilty of financial impropriety or the squandering of funds, it has nothing to hide. Nevertheless, the b…

Williamsburg, Billburg, Billyburg"¦ call it what you like. But whatever you do, don't call it over. The Utne Reader called it "the third hippest neighborhood in America" a few years back. Like any place that gets hyped this much, Williams…

Since September 11th, 2001, Manhattan's Community Board No. 1 - one of 59 such boards in Manhattan - has been called above and beyond its usual duties to tend to the needs of residents living in TriBeCa, Battery Park City, the Financial Di…

Since September 11, 2001, most buildings in New York City have taken security and safety measures much more seriously. Although the effects of the terrorist attacks two years ago forced co-op and condo managers and owners to reevaluate saf…

Following up on the success of the informal roundtable discussion jointly hosted by The Cooperator and the Federation of New York Housing Cooperatives and Condominiums (FNYHC) this past February, a group of area co-op and condo board presi…

"I'm on the board of my co-op in Queens, and there's a problem with our current president; without consulting the other board members, he has cancelled our upcoming meeting, saying there's "˜nothing on the agenda,' and he signs service and …

If an electrical fire destroys your newly renovated kitchen, will your co-op pay to replace your space-age stove and slate countertops? If a pipe bursts in your condo and your $10,000 wallpaper is ruined, who pays to fix it? The answers to…